


Too Full for Sound and Foam

by gwyllgi



Series: Herc/Raleigh Bingo Challenge [18]
Category: Pacific Rim (Movies)
Genre: M/M, Pre-Slash, Questionable Police Procedures, Unrequited Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-16
Updated: 2020-03-16
Packaged: 2021-02-28 16:46:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 867
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23160424
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gwyllgi/pseuds/gwyllgi
Summary: Raleigh gets himself into a spot of trouble.Herc eyed Raleigh where he sat on the curb, hands cuffed behind his back.Written for the Herc/Raleigh Bingo Challenge prompt: Handcuffs
Relationships: Raleigh Becket/Hercules Hansen
Series: Herc/Raleigh Bingo Challenge [18]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/83395
Comments: 1
Kudos: 21





	1. Bingo Card

**Author's Note:**

> Title taken from a Lord Alfred Tennyson poem, _Crossing the Bar_.
> 
> The challenge has been over for years, but I've thought about it every now and then. I've been feeling nostalgic lately and still want a blackout. As such, I'm still keeping track on my card; post-challenge works are stamped in grey, not black. For lack of anywhere better to put it, the first chapter is my bingo card. Click on through to chapter 2 for the fic.


	2. Too Full for Sound and Foam

Herc eyed Raleigh where he sat on the curb, hands cuffed behind his back. A police officer stood before him with a notebook, occasionally made notes as they carried on a conversation that Herc was too far away to hear. The officer glanced at him as he approached, and dipped his head in a respectful nod. Raleigh remained facing away, his head dropped slightly but shoulders held straight with a stubborn strength.

"What's going on here?"

The officer glanced at his notebook, then back to Herc. "Ranger Becket was involved in an altercation with another man this evening," he explained, and gestured to a group of officers clustered around the doorway of what appeared to be a bar. "He claims self-defense, but it's protocol to detain him until statements are sorted out."

Herc sighed and nudged Raleigh's hip with his foot. "What am I going to do with you, Ranger? These aren't the old days; fighting doesn't solve everything."

Raleigh stiffened slightly and turned his face farther from Herc. "I can't stand by and watch a guy get smacked around, boyfriend or not." His tone revealed the frown hidden by his position. "I stepped between them, but he threw the first punch—I just finished it."

Herc glanced at the officer, then at the back of Raleigh's head. His hair was disheveled, no doubt tousled by the fight. "Look at me, Ranger."

"I'd rather not, Marshal."

"Ranger."

Raleigh's shoulders twitched at Herc's commanding tone, before he sighed. "Yes, sir." It was dim in the shadows between street lights, but not so dim that Herc couldn't see the split along his cheek, or his blackening eye, when Raleigh turned to face him.

Years of military training kept Herc's eyes from widening. "How did that happen?" he demanded as he caught Raleigh's chin, turned it to study the injury. "Did you let him hit you?"

Raleigh bit his lip and lowered his eyes. "The boyfriend came at me with a bottle. I wasn't expecting him." His lips twisted slightly, a compression that sat ill on his face. "I should have known to watch my back."

The officer cleared his throat—Herc had almost forgotten he was there. "You seem to have this in-hand, Marshal. If you'll excuse me." With a nod, he stepped away to join the cluster that still milled around the bar's entrance.

Herc watched him go, then stepped in front of Raleigh and squatted to put them at a level. "Rangers work in pairs. Where was your partner?"

Raleigh's chin tipped down for a moment, almost as though he were trying to hide a blush; Herc couldn't tell in the poor lighting. "I wasn't going to drag Mako to a bar, Marshal." He met Herc's eyes and tilted his head slightly. "She's a lot of things, but a wingman isn't one of them."

Unable to disagree, Herc conceded the point. "What were you doing out here?" he asked instead, then chastised himself; Raleigh was a man in his prime who'd spent the last five years building a wall before moving on to the whirlwind of saving the world. It was rather obvious what he was there for. "Never mind, Ranger. That's your business."

Raleigh's reply was interrupted by the officer's return. The man pulled Raleigh to his feet, then turned him to remove the cuffs and tucked them away at his belt. "You're free to go, Ranger Becket," he explained, and awkwardly patted Raleigh's shoulder before he nodded at Herc. "Marshal."

Herc returned the nod, then gripped Raleigh's biceps and led him away, his hold digging into Raleigh's arm. It wasn't until they were buckled into the car Herc had used that he broke the silence. "Did you really need to go looking, Raleigh?"

With a sigh, Raleigh pressed his head against the headrest and absently rubbed one wrist. "Well, the option I want isn't interested. What else was I supposed to do? Sit in my room and pine?"

"At least that wouldn't be splashed all over the news," Herc grumbled. "You're going to keep the PR team busy for a while."

Raleigh rolled his head to look out the window, away from Herc. "That's their job. I'm not going to apologize for helping someone, whether they appreciated it or not." He lowered his voice to a mutter that Herc was fairly certain he wasn't supposed to hear. "At least I still have my hand."

Herc glanced sharply at Raleigh—or, rather, the back of Raleigh's head again—then started the car and began the drive back to the Shatterdome. It passed with no further conversation, and as soon as they were parked in the fleet garage, Raleigh unbuckled and was out like a shot. "See medical for that cut," Herc called after him, then frowned when Raleigh only tossed him a dismissive wave and disappeared into the 'dome proper.

Left on his own, Herc exited the car, then paused. Something was off with Raleigh, something more than the threat of arrest or frustrated libido. Raleigh had pulled them all from the fire before—now it was Herc's turn to return the favor.

With resolve, Herc left the garage and went in search of his Ranger.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been almost five years since I last wrote Pacific Rim fic... but I'm feeling nostalgic and missing my angsty Rangers, so here we are.


End file.
